Sic Transit Gloria
by Fallen Into The Abyss
Summary: A series of oneshot pieces, dealing with the aftermath of events in TOD. So far: Holly, Trouble. Warning: TOD spoilers.


Summary: One-shot, post TOD. Holly wonders about her new life. Warning: TOD spoilers.

I just felt I needed to write this. I read TOD a few days ago and loved it. Couldn't help feeling that our beloved Monsieur Colfer was not quite up to his usual par. But never mind. We have the books, so we thank you, Mr. Colfer.

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**SIC TRANSIT GLORIA**

Holly stood on her desk, trying to peer through the clouds of cloying dust pouring through the trapdoor in the ceiling. Somewhere above her, Mulch Diggums was tramping around the long-forgotten attic room, investigating his new office.

Holly called out wearily, "Have you found anything, Mulch?"

A muffled reply floated down through the trapdoor. "Lots of dust up here. Few bits of old furniture that look like they're about to collapse. There's a nice desk, though. And here's the window. I'll just open it . . ."

Clatters and bangs followed this proclamation. Holly sighed.

This place was a mess, but it was all they could afford. For the hundredth time, she wondered if she had done the right thing. If perhaps she should have stayed a little longer. If perhaps she should have waited a little longer. If perhaps she should have done something differently.

But it didn't matter what she wondered. She was still standing on a rickety desk in a neglected old building. She was still the head and co-owner of a private detective agency. She wasn't an officer anymore.

Mulch announced, "We have a view!"

Holly nodded absently and stepped off her desk onto an equally rickety chair. She sat down and swept some of the dust off her desk with her sleeve. The desk wobbled. Holly sat back in her seat and tried to remember what she was doing here.

There was Mulch: he was so excited about this new venture that he had even declared an intention to downsize his criminal career to a mere hobby. Holly had been touched by gesture, even though it hadn't been meant for her.

There was Artemis: Holly had a feeling he would be interested in any above-ground ventures, as long as he received a cut of the profits. She was loath to admit it, but his help might come in very useful for difficult cases.

And, at the far back of her mind - the part that refused to acknowledge his death - there was Julius. He would have wanted her to go ahead with this mad idea, she knew it. He had hated Sool and would never have wanted Holly to meekly follow the man's orders. And that was enough for Holly. Deep down, it didn't matter that Julius was dead; Holly still knew what he would have wanted.

With a curse and a bang, Mulch jumped down from the attic. A cloud of dust enveloped Holly and she coughed violently. When it cleared, she looked at Mulch. His eyes were shining.

"This place had real potential, Holly! We could have a whole other office up there- computers, the works. The wiring might be a bit of a problem, but I know a friend who can help. I'm not sure if he's out of prison yet, but I'll give his wife a call."

Holly nodded again. Mulch chattered on and Holly turned to look at the clock on the wall. It was an old-fashioned digital one that, incredibly, was still working. They had a meeting in twenty minutes; a company owner was getting suspicious of goings-on down in the lower ranks. Not a bad case to start with, for a detective agency staffed by a convicted criminal and a former police officer currently under investigation by Internal Affairs.

Turning back her co-owner and only colleague, Holly saw he had perched himself on her desk and was using his finger and the blanket of dust to make floor plans. Leaving him to it, Holly pulled her phone out of her pocket and read again the message she had received earlier that morning.

_fairy thief in NYC. artwork missing. interested?_

Artemis was also enthusiastic about Holly's new venture. He had been less pleased about Holly's insistence that he sign a contract preventing him from any on-the-side projects involving the agency, and had pointed out testily that any such contract would be upheld by neither human nor fairy court.

Holly smiled slightly as she took in the neglected flat. Three rooms, four counting the attic, all pitifully in need of work. Well, she had nothing else to do. What was she missing, really? A uniform and a badge. Everything else she could learn to do without.

She leaned over and erased the Jacuzzi tub from Mulch's floor plan and told him they had to go. As he locked up, Holly sent Artemis a reply. She and Mulch went to a fancy café downtown where an anxious businessman paid the bill. Life went on, _sans_ uniform or badge.


End file.
